Omake: Dreams and Lists
Hazou lay down in his appartment. He was frustrated. He'd come so close to seeing Akane again, but still wasn't able to. After finally arriving in Leaf, he found that he was further than ever from Akane. He sighed. At least she was safe here.
Maybe safer than she ever was with me. He drifted off to sleep, tossing and turning in his bed.
---
Hazou glanced through the leaves. Noburi was unconscious with a broken barrel and Keiko lay tied to a tree. The Liberator nin were interrogating Akane. Crap. They figured out she wasn't on their side. Gotta go!
Hazou dropped down from the branch and charged the ninjutsu user, trying to save Akane from his finger spark jutsu. She was injured and couldn't fight back well! He had to protect her! He had to protect everyone! But the Taijutsu genin got in the way.
Focusing, he ignored the shouts around him and began exchanging blows with Bosatsu. Finally, he managed a critical blow, crushing his heart and revealing the way to Ken who had just turned to fight him.
Behind Ken was
--doesn't matter, need to win. Ignoring more panicked yelling, Hazou rushed Ken preventing his escape. After closing range and blocking a couple sparks with his arm, Hazou turned Ken's face to pulp. Turning around, he saw Mirai closing in on him, with bloody scythe drawn.
Gotta stay focused. Standing his ground until the last minute, Hazou pivoted in a blur of motion spinning the glaive wielding opponent's blade into her own abdomen. Victorious, Hazou looked around the battlefield.
There was Ken, fist sized hole in face - not a threat. There was Bosatsu, chest crushed - not a threat. There was Mirai, blood pouring from her mouth and blade protruding from her stomach - not a threat. Relieved, Hazou sighed and looked around for his allies. Gotta free everyone, find Inoue, and get out.
There was Noburi, bruised and unconscious, barrel broken beside him.
Probably a liability, but what else is new.
There was Keiko, Hazou frowned.
Had she been that wounded before? He rushed to her side and found blood pouring from her neck, eyes closed and face set in a defeated expression. "Keiko!" Hazou shouted. He felt for a pulse. There was none.
Turning, he ran to Akane. Her eyes had burst from Ken's sparks, and her back was broken. "Akane?" He murmured approaching, hoping for any sign of life. Her lips were moving!
She was alive! He knelt closer to hear her.
"Sensei... is that you? I can't... see you. Where…. are you? Sorry I… I couldn't be… youthful… like... you..." her voice trailed off into nothing.
---
"Ahhhrrrgg" Noburi gasped as a tentacle from the ocean picked him up, acid eating away at his skin.
"Die stinkers!" Kagome threw an explosive seal at the beast. It's arm holding Noburi exploded. So did Noburi.
"Kagome!" Akane shouted.
Kagome stared in shock, unmoving.
"Kagome! Look Out!" Akane bolted past him. "Flames Of Youth!!!" She shouted as she punched the appendage reaching for Kagome. Her fist sunk into the limb, acid oozing around her hand. The tentacle retreated, as Mari finished off the body.
Hazou looked around.
Noburi chunks were still raining down. Akane was grasping her steadily disolving fist. Kagome had run off in shock. Keiko was in the fetal position chanting something under her breath, Mari was chasing after Kagome, and Akane's right hand had just finished dissolving.
---
Hazou hid with his team in the trees as their Tapir handling assailants shot arrows at them.
"We come in peace!" Inoue yelled. She dodged an arrow. "We don't want to hurt you."
"Sensei's right! You don't need to fight us" Akane stepped out onto the branch and shouted "We just wan---" Her voice cut off as an arrow the the throat silenced her.
---
A wave of earth approached. Hazou concentrated on staying upright and being able to substitute with Inoue's clones. Suddenly, as the dust settled, he heard cries of panic, and looked out to see Inoue's body skewered to a spear, Noburi's barrel broken, Kagome's body a smear across many yards, and Akane swiftly beheading by a mounted Tapir rider.
---
Hazou glanced around as the Hot Springs team caught up with them, they just caught up and Akane turned back to buy time.
---
"She's got chakra exhaustion. There's nothing we can do. I'm sorry Hazou."
---
The Rice ninja laughed at Keiko. The last thing Hazou saw was a ball of fire engulfing Akane.
---
"Flames of Youth!" Akane's fist ripped through the zombified ninja. Her joyous smile was wiped off her face from the implanted explosive.
---
"It Burns!" Akane screamed as Arikada's insects chewed threw her insides and she breathed her last.
---
Hazou knelt by the memorial in Leaf, "I'm sorry Akane. I thought they could fix this."
---
Kabuto laughed as he held up a string of intestines. "Intriguing. So the jutsu hardens both the organs and the skin. You've been most helpful. Time for bed." He injected Akane with a sedative and carefully placed her insides inside.
---
Assassins came in the night. They knew they couldn't hit Jiraiya or Inoue or the genin, but Akane was free game.
---
Hazou awoke with sweat covering his body.
Still in Leaf. No visible threats. Looks like tonight was going to be another sleepless night. He pulled out a sheet of paper and started writing.
Macerator V 2.0 Applications (alphabetized)
- Crowd Control: Fill with peppers, chilies or other skin or eye irritants.
- Useful for disbanding/disabling groups of ninja.
- Could provide a good way for temporary area denial with minimal property damage, or for crowd dispersal.
- Fireball Bomb: Fill with a burning log.
- Give Jiraiya the specs beforehand (like somewhere safe) + let him decide; show him only if he agrees.
- Note that we already tested it and don't think it can be a world-ending application; Agent Black probably got the info from Mari-sensei earlier anyway.
- Also note that the explosions we used are ~B-rank (confirm with Mari-sensei)
- Flashbang: Fill with small amount of soft, white-hot metal.
- Probably a bit difficult to get right, but it should fill the air with a large pile of glowing dust that is very bright for a tiny moment before it cools off.
- Non-lethal, though it might cause minor blisters.
- Scent Bomb: Fill with scented oils or other similar materials.
- Border patrols and other similar groups given these could tag a more powerful enemy and run, allowing more powerful teams with good noses to find them more easily.
- Smoke Bomb: Fill with ash or talc, mostly annoying.
He sighed.
Maybe with these we can keep everyone alive and not need to die. On to the next. He raised his quill and started the next list.
Macerator V 2.0 Applications (Prioritized)
Macerator V 2.0 Applications (Clan impact)
Macerator V 2.0 App
Inoue found Hazou that morning, head on the desk, quill endlessly repeating the letter p, ink having long ago run dry.